Things Change
by moonstone glows
Summary: One moment changes things for the whole Kinomoto family. TYY.


Cardcaptor Sakura

Kinomoto Touya gunned the engine of his motorcycle, pushing the needle on the Speedo up just a little higher, He had been away, working at a summer job for five weeks, and he was eager to get home now, to see his father, his Kaijuu sister, and his precious beloved again. That was the reunion he was looking forward to the most, it had been far too long since he had felt the touch of the beautiful complex being of his lover, Yue, Yuki.

He passed the sign welcoming drivers to Tomeda, and dropped his speed to the speed limit, not wanting to get stopped by the police for speeding.

He reached a junction on the very edge of the residential area, only minutes away from home now, and that was when it happened. A driver pulled out of the junction, not seeing the motorcycle that had the right of way, or grossly misjudging the distance if he did. There wasn't a damn thing Touya could do about it, sloughing into the side of the van. He heard the sickening crunch of bone on metal, but darkness swallowed him before he ever felt the pain.

xxx

At the Kinomoto residence, Fujitaka, Sakura and Yukito were putting the finishing touches to the special meal they had all prepared to welcome Touya home.

"Where is he?" Sakura asked, bouncing to the front door to look out, before bouncing back again.

They all heard distant sirens, but even in a quiet town like Tomeda, they were heard often enough that it didn't even raise their curiosity slightly.

"Sakura, he couldn't give an exact time, it depends on the traffic, you know that. He said he would try to be here between four and five, it's only just gone four now. Just relax, and he'll be home before you know it." Fujitaka laughed.

"Yes dad," she said, smiling over at Yukito. She could see that he was as eager to see Touya as she was. Kero fluttered into the room then, setting himself down on her shoulder.

"When's dinner? I'm so hungry." He whined.

"When onii-chan gets home, and you ate a whole packet of cookies less than an hour ago. You can wait for dinner, with the rest of us." Sakura rebuked him.

It was almost quarter to five when there was a firm knock at the front door.

"Touya." Sakura cried, jumping to her feet.

"I didn't hear his bike. I'll see who it is," Fujitaka said, leaving the room. Yukito and Sakura heard, low voices, and then the voices moved to her fathers study.

"Must be someone from the university." Sakura shrugged, losing interest. In the next instant, there was a loud cry, a sound filled with grief, anger and denial, and the voice was clearly Fujitaka's.

Sakura and Yukito bolted for the study, throwing open the door.

Inside, Fujitaka sat in the chair at his desk, tears streaming down his face, and two police officers stood just to the side of him.

"Daddy?" Sakura asked, feeling very, very scared. Fujitaka looked at the two of them for a long moment, his eyes lost and filled with shock.

"Sakura, Yukito-san. I have... there's been..." He started speaking, but then trailed off, fresh tears taking his control.

"Kinomoto-san, would you like us to..." One of the police officers started to ask, but he shook his head.

"Sakura, Yukito. There has been an accident." Fujitaka managed to say.

"Touya?" Sakura asked, terror lacing her voice. She could feel Yukito frozen with fear and denial beside her, trying to maintain control, to not switch forms in front of the outsiders.

"He's been taken to hospital, he is apparently very, very badly hurt."

"We can take you there now, if you wish," One of the officers said.

"Please," Fujitaka said. He looked at Yukito, stepping over to put a gentle hand on one of his shoulders as he rested the other on Sakura's head.

xxxx

At the hospital, the police stayed there too, keeping apart, but not too far off. Yukito hadn't said a word in hours, and Fujitaka, Sakura, and Kero were all growing worried about him. They all knew how much in love the two were, and they all wondered if Yue could survive the death of another lover.

A doctor came along the corridor, dressed in surgical scrubs soaked in blood and sweat, he stopped to talk to the police officers, shaking his head several times, then after a glance down the corridor by the officers and the doctor, he walked in their direction, his face professionally blank.

"Kinomoto-San, you are Kinomoto Touya's father, I understand."

"Yes, and this is his little sister, and his partner."

"Ah. Would you like to come to my office with me?"

"No. There is nothing that cannot be said in front of Sakura and Yukito-san," Fujitaka said firmly. The doctor hesitated for a moment longer, then capitulated.

"Very well. Your son was very badly injured by the impact. We did everything we could in surgery, and he's now in intensive care, on complete life support, however, we do not expect him to survive the night, he is already showing signs of organ failure, even with the life support. We would like your permission not to try to resuscitate him if his heart does fail."

Yukito emitted a strangled sob, and bolted down the corridor, away from the small group, he didn't want to hear this, he didn't want to hear the doctors asking them to let his beloved To-ya die, and he really, really didn't want to hear Fujitaka's answer. He knew that the man loved his son a lot, and wouldn't want to see him in pain, to see him suffer, and there was a chance he might agree.

Fujitaka watched Yukito run down the corridor, Sakura hot on his heels, obviously concerned for both her friend Yukito, and the guardian, Yue. His first instinct had been to give the doctor his permission, to spare his son any further suffering, but Yukito's reaction changed his mind. He didn't have the right to decide for them, life or death should be Touya's choice, their choice.

"No, I want you to fight tooth and nail to keep him with us, he should be given every chance to pull through this."

The doctor sighed, suddenly glad that the two young ones had run off.

"Forgive me for being blunt, but do you have any idea just how much damage is done to the human body in a high speed impact of this type. Even if your son by some miracle survives, the odds are he won't be the same as he was before. There is a high risk of permanent disability of some kind."

"That is something we will face together, but he has to have every chance at life."

Kero took on his true form as he and Sakura came onto the hospital roof. Yue was in the corner, curled up inside his wings, sobbing. Kerberos was shocked, he had never seen Yue quite like this before, not even after Clow had died.

"Yue," Sakura said gently, going and kneeling by him. Yue opened his wings just enough to look at her. His pale face was streaked with tears, and there was naked pain and grief in his eyes.

"Mistress, promise me, please. If To-ya should die, please promise me that you will release me."

"Release you?"

"Yes. I... I cannot... will not... go on without him. I cannot do it again." Yue whispered brokenly.

"You're asking me to let you die, aren't you?" She asked, reaching out to brush tears from his face.

"Yes. He should not have to go into the darkness alone, and without him, I will eventually die anyway. I would much rather go with him, than after him, please mistresses."

"What do you mean, you will die anyway?"

"He still takes his power from your brother, he will begin to fade as he did before," Kerberos said.

"But, I'm strong enough to support you now," Sakura said.

"No, please."

"You really love him that much?"

"He is everything to me, the center of my world. Please don't misunderstand mistress, you are the card mistress, and I would lay down my life for you, but..."

"But he is the master of your heart," she said with a gentle smile.

"Forgive me mistress."

"For what? I would find it harder to forgive if you didn't love him wholeheartedly. He fought hard to win your heart Yue, and gave you all of his without hesitation. I would never forgive you if I found you had held back on him."

"There was never any chance of that, no matter how much I may have denied it at the start, he had captured me, heart and soul, the moment I set eyes on him, just as he did with Yukito."

She brushed tears from his face again, then rose to her feet.

"If he dies, and you truly want to go with him into the darkness, I will not stand in your way," she said. She held out a hand to him.

"Come on, we should be with him, and we should not leave father to watch over him alone."

He took her hand, and changed forms as he allowed her to help him to his feet.

"I... thank you mistress."

They went back inside, and Yue easily located the weak, fading life force of the one he loved.

Fujitaka looked up as Sakura, Yukito and the little stuffed toy came into the room. Yukito seemed to be oddly calm now as he moved to the bedside. Touya lay pale and still, tubes and wires seeming to be attached to every available area of his skin.

Sakura went to her father, and he wrapped his arms around her, lifting her into his lap, and to his surprise, Kero went to Yukito, setting down on his shoulder, and nuzzling into his neck.

"Are you all right Yukito-san?" Fujitaka asked softly.

"Not really, but I will be as strong as I can, for him."

There was a soft bleeping from one of the machines beside the bed some time later. Sakura was asleep in Fujitaka's lap, and Fujitaka and Yukito both started at the soft alarm.

"What's that?" Yukito asked.

"I'm not sure, I think it's a warning, but I don't know," Fujitaka said. A nurse hurried in, the alarm apparently also having sounded out at her desk.

"What's going on?" Fujitaka asked her.

"His blood pressure is starting to drop, and his heart beat is becoming erratic. He may be bleeding internally again. If he is, there will be very little more the doctors can do for him, he's not strong enough to undergo any further surgery," The nurse said, hitting a button to summon further medical assistance. She looked at Sakura, still sleeping in her fathers lap.

"You should take her out of here, the cardiac alarm is going to sound any second, and things are going to get chaotic, and noisy in here, she shouldn't see it. There is a room on the other side of the hall, a family room, you can wait in there."

"Yes. Yukito?" Fujitaka said softly.

"I will not leave him," he said, an odd intensity in his amber eyes, and just for a moment, they lightened to violet.

Fujitaka rose silently and carried Sakura from the room, his heart breaking for his son and the young man who loved him. He couldn't believe they were gong to lose his strong, steady, beautiful son this way. He knew in his heart that the doctor was correct, and there was very little chance of his son pulling through this. He went into the family room, and set Sakura very gently down on one of the sofas in there.

"Kero," he said softly. The little guardian came up to hover in front of his eyes.

"Kero, I'm worried about Yukito-san, Yue-san. I know how much he loves my son, and I'm not sure how he will cope with his death. I'm fairly sure that between me, and her friends, we can cope with Sakura's grief, but he..."

"Grief will not be an issue for him," Kero said quietly.

"Sorry?"

"That is why he was so calm before. If Touya dies, he will die too. He does not wish to live without him."

"He'll kill himself?"

"He won't need to. He has asked Sakura to release him if Touya dies."

"Release him?"

"He was created as a Clow card, we both were. She can release him, let him die."

"Why would she do that?"

"Because he asked it of her. He draws power from Touya anyway, and he made it clear that he would not let her support him, so he would slowly die anyway, and she preferred to allow him to go with the one he loves."

"Stay here with her, please."

"Of course," Kero said.

Fujitaka slipped out of the room again, going back to the room where the staff were working frantically over his son, but not going in. He saw Yukito standing in the corner out of the way, watching them, tears running freely down his face.

"Damn it, we're losing him," the doctor said.

Everything seemed to slow inside the room all of a sudden, the shriek of the monitors slowing to a stop as the medics stopped moving, even Yukito seemed to freeze, but all of a sudden, he shifted into Yue, and the angelic creature looked around in confusion.

There was a flare of light, and a stunning young woman appeared in the room. looking at the frozen figures, then at Yue.

"Mistress?"

"I've missed you Yue, both of you. It wasn't the same after you two died."

"Why have you come so far back? How did you do it?"

"I did it by being very determined, and why? Because I am not going to see two people I love very much die now that I have found a way to prevent it."

"Prevent it?"

"Yes, do you love him Yue?"

"Of course I do, more than anything in the world."

"Do you want him, do you want him at your side for eternity?"

"Yes."

"Then, I need the younger me here, we will need the mirror card to take his place."

"I'm here," Sakura said, walking up behind her father, making everyone jump.

"Will you help us?" The older Sakura asked.

"If it will save onii-chan, and Yue-san, I will do anything you ask."

"Will you summon the mirror card. She will have to mimic his injuries exactly, she will have to be active for a long time, if you wish him to appear to recover, or to appear to die, if you do not wish her to be active for so long."

"He must be seen to survive, or he will never be able to go on with his life here, with school, and work," Sakura said, summoning the mirror card. She told the card what she wanted her to do, and asked her if she was willing. Mirror looked at the frozen Touya, whom she loved, and then at her master card, who she had always loved, because she had always been aware of the tenderness hidden under his icy exterior.

"I will do anything you ask of me, to help Yue-sama and Touya-san," Mirror said softly.

"You understand that this will be arduous, uncomfortable and unpleasant for you?"

"I don't want Yue-sama and his beloved to die."

"Thank you." Sakura said, impulsively reaching out to draw mirror into a gentle embrace for a moment.

"All right, the time freeze will not last much longer, and I do not have long here. Let's get them swapped over, and get him out of here," The older Sakura said.

"Where are we taking him?" Sakura asked as they used one of the older Sakura's cards to exchange the positions of Touya and the mirror card.

"No where, we don't have time, we have seconds before he slips from us. Earthy, release and dispel," she said. The card burst free, the spirit hovering over them.

"Are you ready?" She asked it, the spirit nodded, and the older Sakura rose to her feet, planting her staff firmly on the floor in front of her.

"Spirit of the Earth card, I bind you to this human, I recreate you the Earth Guardian." She intoned. The spirit flowed into her staff, then brilliant light flowed out, flowing into and around Touya, fusing the Earth spirit into him. The light formed into a cocoon around him, and the older Sakura looked up.

"You can move him now, you must be quick, and very gentle. The timeline is changing, and the time freeze won't last much longer," The older Sakura said, fading slowly out of existence.

"Float card, release and dispel. Take my brother home. Kero, go with them, protect them. We will be there as soon as we can," Sakura said.

"All right," Kero said as the float card enveloped Touya, gently floating him away.

The time freeze ended, and the frenetic activity around Touya started up again.

"His heart rate is starting to stabilize. Get another transfusion line in, we need to hope we can keep him stable long enough for the bleeding to stop." The doctor ordered. He looked at the group in the doorway.

"We got him this time, but if there is another crisis, we may not be so lucky." He warned.

"He's a fighter, he will survive," Fujitaka said firmly.

"I hope you're right. Look, it's very late, and there is nothing you can do here tonight. Why don't the three of you go home and get some rest, you can come back in the morning."

"You'll call, if anything happens?" Fujitaka asked doubtfully.

"Of course we will."

"Very well," Fujitaka said.

xxxx

When they reached the house, Kero sat in his true form beside the faintly glowing cocoon that enveloped the still figure.

"How long will this take?" Sakura asked.

"It's hard to say. When Clow created Yue, it took weeks, and so much power," Kero said.

"You sound worried," Fujitaka said.

"I am, a little. I don't understand where the power for this is coming from, and I'm worried about Yue, if he has the power to sustain him until this is done."

Yukito shifted back into Yue, and knelt beside Kero, reaching out one hand, but stopping short of touching the cocoon.

"His link to me is strong, and the power that is altering him is coming from the same source as his own, the dark. Every detail must have been meticulously planned before she came back," he said, looking at Sakura with a lot of respect in his eyes.

"You must love him a lot to have spent so many years looking for a way to prevent his death," he said.

"Didn't you listen to what she said Yue? It's both of you that matters, you and he belong together," Sakura said, hugging him gently. He leaned into the comforting embrace slightly, before pulling away, embarrassed.

Sakura went to open the door the next morning when the doorbell rang, and was startled to see Tomoyo and Sayoran there.

"Are you ready Sakura?" Tomoyo asked.

"Ready?"

"We're going to the amusement park, remember," Sayoran said.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I can't go," she said.

"Why not?" Tomoyo asked.

"Touya was in a bad accident last night."

"Oh my God. Is he badly hurt?" Tomoyo breathed.

"You two had better come in," Sakura said, stepping back.

"How bad was it?" Sayoran asked as she shut the front door behind them.

"He was very badly injured, and he was within minutes of dying. Someone had other ideas," she said, leading them to the living room. Kero stood defensively between them and the cocoon where his little brother's lover rested.

"Sakura?" He asked uncertainly.

"It's all right Kero, they're not coming in here, but I thought they should know what's going on, some of it anyway," she said, leading them away from the door.

"I don't understand," Sayoran said as she led them up to her room, leaving the door open so she could hear if anything happened downstairs.

"What is that thing downstairs?" Tomoyo asked.

"Touya," Sakura said simply.

"What? But you said..." Sayoran blurted. She smiled sadly at her boyfriend.

"I said he almost died, and someone had other ideas. He is becoming a guardian, it was the only way to keep him and Yue alive. The mirror card has taken his place at the hospital, and she will stay there until she can make it look like he recovered from his injuries. Until then, we have to continue acting like Onii-chan is lying critically ill in the intensive care. So dad, Yukito and I are going back to the hospital soon, and Kero is going to be keeping watch over Onii-chan."

"A duty he seems to be taking very seriously," Sayoran said.

"He doesn't want anything to happen to Yue, and if Onii-chan dies, Yue will die," Sakura said.

"How did he get so badly injured Sakura, what happened to him?" Tomoyo asked.

"He was coming home from his summer job, and a van pulled out in front of his motorcycle. There was nothing he could do, he hit the van at full speed. His injuries were so bad, that they wanted permission to let him die if his heart stopped."

"My God. If there is anything we can do to help Sakura, just let us know," Tomoyo said.

"Thanks, but the biggest thing is to keep the secret. Everyone has to believe that the person lying in that intensive care unit is Touya."

"You have nothing to worry about there, we'll keep your secret," Sayoran said.

"Even from your mother?"

"Even from her." He promised.

xxxx

As the days passed, the 'Touya' in the hospital slowly made a miraculous recovery, and the Touya at the house remained in the cocoon. The first sign of change there came on the day Fujitaka had persuaded Sakura and Yukito to go back to school. She wandered in to say good morning to Kero, and the hidden form of her brother, as she did every morning. She saw faint patterns traced on the surface of the cocoon.

"What are these?" She asked Kero.

"The feathers are starting to form. In a few days, you'll be able to see them a little more clearly, and a few days after that, the wings themselves will be a little more defined. This time next week, you'll be able to tell what color they're going to be."

"They'll be white, won't they?" She asked, startled.

"Not necessarily. White was the color Clow chose for Yue and I, but I don't see white suiting your brother. Either the color will be what the later you chose, or she may somehow have found a way to let him decide the color. Either way, I don't see it being white," Kero said, rubbing his heavy head gently against the cocoon. They had all gotten over the reluctance to touch the cocoon when Yue had accidentally brushed it with his wing, and realized that Touya was aware of the contact, and reassured and comforted by it.

Yukito came in, dressed in his school uniform. He had been staying at the house since the night of the accident, both because he wanted to be close to Touya, and because they didn't want him to be alone.

"Oh, his wings are starting to come through," he said happily, resting one hand lightly on top of the cocoon. His eyes glazed slightly, and he smiled a sweet, tender smile.

"What?" Sakura asked, seeing the smile. He was the only one who had any sense of what was happening inside of the magical barrier surrounding her brother.

"He's asleep, he's dreaming," he said softly.

"Isn't he always asleep inside there?" She asked.

"No, of course not. He's awake at night, when the power of the darkness is flowing through him, driving the change."

"Awake?" She asked, horrified at the thought of him trapped inside there, awake.

"Oh, I'm sorry, not in the way you're thinking. He's awake in the sense that his mind is active, he can feel the changes happening, he can feel what's going on around him, when we touch him, and he can feel the world around him. If he gets bored with that, he can reach out to the stars. I suspect he was always capable of astral projection, but never had the confidence to do it. Then during the day, he sleeps, and dreams, to conserve power."

"So, can you tell what he's dreaming?" She asked, curious.

"Yes, but I don't think he'd like it if I told you," he said, blushing faintly.

"Ah. Come on then, we don't want to be late for school. Look after him Kero."

"Of course," he said. She touched the cocoon lightly.

"See you later, Onii-chan," she said, before following Yukito out of the room.

xxxx

By mid morning, Yukito wanted to scream. Everyone kept asked him about Touya, and the accident, and he didn't want to talk about it. When the lunch bell finally rang, he sought refuge in the tree where he and Touya usually sat to eat.

"Yukito-san." A soft voice called. He looked down to the ground.

"Oh, hello Youko-san." He sighed, expecting the same questions over again.

"How are you?" She surprised him by asking.

"What?"

"How are you? It must have been so hard all morning, people harassing you."

"I'm... I'm fine, thank you. I guess it's not their fault, they can't help being curious about something like that," he said.

"And of course, they have no idea how you feel about him, how much they're hurting you by asking such morbid questions."

"I don't feel much inclined to tell them that," he said with a shrug.

"Of course not. I'm glad he's on the mend though." She smiled.

"What? How do you know...?" He asked, startled once more.

"If he wasn't out of danger, you wouldn't have come back yet. You would have still been there, in case anything happened," she said with a smile.

"He is out of danger. They expect him to recover, but they don't know yet what long term effects there might be," he said, giving her more information than the brusque replies he had given anyone else who had asked.

"I'm sorry," she said. He shrugged again.

"I don't care what they say. He's going to be fine, he'll be back at school, and life will go on," he said firmly. She smiled up at him, then left him alone.

xxxxxxxx

Two weeks after the accident, 'Touya' was moved out of intensive care and into a small private room, which meant the poor mirror card had to contend with visitors from outside of the small family group who knew what was going on, and she was terrified of messing it up somehow. It was Tomoyo who came up with the solution, when she went in with Sakura one day after school to find mirror faced with one of Touya's class mates. Fortunately the girl left when Sakura and Tomoyo arrived, and the mirror card looked like she wanted to faint with relief.

"If you get trapped with someone from outside like that again, just pretend to fall asleep. You're supposed to be so badly injured, that no one will question the apparent weakness." Tomoyo told her softly. Mirror looked at Sakura, who nodded.

"That's a good idea, and it won't be for much longer. Daddy said the doctors told him that if 'Touya' keeps on recovering the way he has been, he should be able to go home in a week or so, and rest there."

"I haven't been going too fast have I?" Mirror asked, alarmed.

"They don't seem to be suspicious. You're doing fine mirror, and we're grateful for your help." Sakura reassured her.

"I'm glad that I could help you, and Yue-sama and Touya-san," Mirror said softly. She looked up, and Sakura could see that she wanted to ask something.

"It's OK, go ahead." Sakura prompted.

"How is Touya-san?" Mirror whispered.

"He's doing fine. His wings are almost fully formed now. In Kero's rather charming words, he should be cooked in a week or so."

"What color are they?" Mirror asked, and Sakura smiled.

"Wait and see," she said, giving mirror a gentle kiss on the forehead.

"You're doing great," she said again as they left.

As soon as they got into the house, Sakura went to the living room, scratching Kero between the ears.

"Wow, so different from the last time I was here," Tomoyo said, looking at the gently floating form. The ebony black wings were still wrapped tightly around Touya, covering him completely. She reached out to touch him, then hesitated, and looked at Sakura.

"Go ahead," Sakura said.

Tomoyo stroked her hands over the surface, feeling the soft silken surface that had yet to break into individual feathers.

"So soft." She breathed.

"I know."

Kero rubbed his head against Sakura's leg.

"Yue is practically dizzy with excitement," he said.

"Yue is? Why?"

"Some of the feathers at the back, along the edges of his wings have become individual. It means in the next couple of days, his wings should be fully feathered, and therefore capable of opening. After that, the only question is how much of the physical damage is left to repair. His wings could even open by the weekend."

"And then he'll be awake, well again?" Sakura asked.

"Maybe not straight away, but it means he's getting stronger, healing and changing faster."

Yukito came in, his old, dazzling smile on his face.

"He is stronger, much stronger. He's accelerating it himself, because he wants out," he said, resting both hands lightly on top of the ebony wings, and stroking gently.

"Is that safe? Him pushing it, I mean?" Sakura asked.

"Yes, he's accelerating all the processes, including healing. He can't come out until he's really ready, I think that was built into the spell that is changing him, after all, you know your brother very well."

"Yes, patience never has been one of his stronger traits." She agreed. She saw his eyes glaze again as he stroked the wings, and smiled.

"Is he asleep or awake?" She asked him.

"Oh, awake," Yukito said softly, stroking gently over the still forming feathers.

"Can he hear us?"

"No, he can tell who is here, and sense the emotions, but he can't hear."

"So, he doesn't know how much we want him well again?"

"Come here," Yukito said. She came over, and he put his hands over hers, encouraging her to stroke the soft surface of the wings.

"As long as he is awake, and you're touching him, he can pick up your thoughts directly."

She stroked the wings softly, and opened her mind to him, letting him feel how much she loved him, and how pleased she was that he hadn't been killed. She rested her face against the soft, dark surface under her hands, and for the first time since the night of the accident, she cried. She thought she felt a hand lightly touch her hair, and then distinctly heard a voice she hadn't heard much in two months, and not at all for nearly one.

"Oi, Kaijuu, you're going to make the wings soggy." She heard him say. She looked up at Yukito, startled, and he smiled.

"You heard him in your mind, because you were touching him. And that wasn't nice To-ya." He rebuked gently, but his hands carried on moving over the wings none the less.

"You do know he loves you too Sakura, don't you?" He asked her.

"Of course I do, even if he is too much of a meat head to tell me that himself," she said, turning around to hug Yukito.

xxxx

Sakura woke with a start when Kero pounced on her legs some days later.

"What?" She said sleepily.

"Come on Sakura, get up. His wings are starting to open. Get up, I have to wake Yue, and your father," he said, bounding out again. Sakura shook herself awake, and pulled her robe on. pounding down the stairs, closely followed by the others.

"We need candles. If he is conscious when his wings open, the electric lights will be too harsh," Yue said instantly.

"Here," Fujitaka said, pulling some out of a drawer, where he kept them in case of power cuts.

They lit the candles, and turned out the light, then they just watched in silence, hardly daring to breathe. The dark wings slowly started to unfurl, the feathers rustling and whispering over each other, they gently opened, stretching out to their full span, which was most of the way across the room, then they folded in gently against his back.

Instinct made the others hang back and leave Yue to go to his lover alone.

"To-ya." He whispered, stroking light fingers delicately over the high cheekbones.

"Yue," Touya said softly, reaching up with one hand to catch the hand that was touching him, entwining their fingers tightly.

"Are you ready?" He whispered directly into his lovers mind.

"Yes," Yue replied in the same way. He felt the contact on his mind deepen, and expand, becoming all encompassing, and he was aware of every fiber of Touya's being, as their minds entwined and interlaced.

"Yue?" Sakura said, scared, as her guardians amethyst eyes slid shut, and he went very still.

"We should leave them." Kero murmured, feeling the deep psychic contact take hold on his little brother's mind.

"But they..."

"Have just initiated a binding, and it would be best if the flow of magical energy were not interrupted," Kero said firmly.

"A binding?" Sakura asked after they had extinguished the candles, leaving the two on the faint silvery moonlight, and headed back upstairs.

"Kind of a mating bond, only given the depth of contact I felt taking hold, this is on every level. Nothing is getting between them now," Kero said.

"Is he strong enough for that?" Fujitaka asked in alarm.

"Who Touya? He initiated it."

xxxx

Fujitaka was first up the next morning, and he went down to the living room to make sure everything was all right there before he started breakfast. The two were curled asleep on the floor, their bodies hidden by their wings, but he could see Yue's white robes, discarded on the floor, leading him to suspect that they had made love some time during the night.

"Is Sakura awake?" He asked, hearing Kero's claws clicking along the hall behind him.

"No. Just as well really. I certainly don't feel like trying to explain this one to her." Kero rumbled.

"I think Sakura is well aware that her brother and her guardian sleep together. However, it would be prudent to move them before she does wake up I suppose."

"Well, I don't think Touya will wake up again for another few days now, and Yue feels drained too, so I don't think we're going to be able to wake him up either," Kero said.

"Well, there is a fairly simple way to move them," Fujitaka said, and he simply picked them up one at a time, and carried them upstairs, gently setting them both down on Touya's bed and pulling the covers over them.

"Do you think they'll be all right here?" He asked Kero.

"As long as they're left together, they'll be fine," Kero said.

"God knows what I'm going to tell the school about Yukito."

"Tell them that the stress of the last few weeks has made him ill." Kero suggested.

"I'll think about it," Fujitaka said, leaving the two alone to sleep.

He had just started breakfast cooking when the phone rang, and he went to pick it up.

"Kinomoto Fujitaka," he said.

"Kinomoto-san, its doctor Yoshimoto."

"Why are you calling? Is something wrong with my son?" He asked, wondering if the mirror card had been caught out somehow.

"No, not at all, I'm sorry if I alarmed you. I just wanted to call you myself, and tell you that your son can go home today. He'll need bed rest for another week or so, and we'll have a nurse call every few days to check on him, and he's not to even consider going back to school before the end of the month, but he wants to go home, and as long as he's careful, I don't see any reason to keep him here."

"Thank you, thank you so much." Fujitaka said.

"You can come and get him about two this afternoon, that will give us chance to draw up the full list of instructions on what he can and can't do, and you will still need to medicate him, if you can handle that?"

"Not a problem."

"Then I'll see you around two."

"Yes, thanks again doctor."

The conversation ended, and he went back to make sure breakfast didn't burn.

xxxx

Touya went back to school on the first day of the next month. He hadn't got too far behind with his work, because Yukito had been bringing it home for him, even so, he found himself oddly nervous, reluctant to go back and face the school.

"You'll be fine." Yukito told him, feeling his nerves through the powerful bonds that now rested between them.

"I guess," Touya said uncertainly. One thing he really wasn't happy about was that the doctor had said he still wasn't permitted to do sports, or anything else strenuous, but the absolute worst thing was that he knew he was going to have to deal with hoards of girls, trying to use false concern to get him to agree to a date with them.

"Yuki, how would you feel about coming out?" He asked.

"Coming out where?" He asked blankly, before realizing what his mate meant.

"To-ya, are you suggesting telling the school?" Yukito asked.

"Yes, no, I don't know." Touya sighed.

"Well, that covers all the bases." Yukito laughed.

"I suppose I'm just being silly, but I want them to leave us alone."

"It's up to you Koi, I'm happy if you're happy. If you want to tell everyone we're together, I have no problem with that."

"No. I don't really think I'm ready for everyone to know." He finally sighed.

"So, ready to face the day then?" Yukito asked, squeezing his hand gently.

"Yes, let's go in." Touya replied.

As soon as they were in the building, a familiar shriek rang out.

"Touya-kun." Akizuki yelled, launching herself to clamp around his neck as soon as she set eyes on him. For the first time ever, Yukito blocked her.

"No, Akizuki. He's still kind of fragile, and the last thing he needs is you hanging off him," he said, his eyes hard, cold.

"I just want to welcome him back to school." She pouted, and a malicious look came into her eyes.

"Anyone would think you were jealous, Tsukishiro," she said.

"I have nothing to be jealous of Akizuki," he said, and then in a lower voice, he added.

"Because I know To-ya would never touch you in a million years." He goaded, a violet sheen passing briefly over his eyes. Her eyes widened, and as she stood there in shock, Yukito got Touya past her.

"That may not have been wise." Touya pointed out.

"Everyone knows Akizuki has a thing for you, they'll know anything she says is just malicious lies because you keep rejecting her," Yukito said calmly.

"I like this new, more secure you. As long as it doesn't stop you needing me at all."

"Never that, and you are responsible for the new, more secure me. Knowing that now, nothing can ever part us," Yukito said, that violet sheen flashing over his eyes again.

"My angel." Touya whispered, barely managing to suppress the urge to kiss his mate.

Touya took his seat beside Yukito in class, waiting quietly for the teacher to arrive.

His desk was quickly surrounded by most of the girls in class.

"Kinomoto-san, it's so good to see you back again. How do you feel?" One asked.

"Fine," he said shortly.

"What was it like in the hospital?" Another asked.

"I was unconscious most of the time, I wouldn't know," he snapped.

The teacher had come in unnoticed, and now he rapped his hand sharply down on the desk.

"Everyone take your seats please," he said. The girls all filed back to their desks, and the teacher looked across the room.

"I'm sure we're all very pleased to see Kinomoto-san back with us again, and looking so well, however, he is still recuperating from a serious injury, and the last thing he needs is a lot of stress, so please, leave him in peace. Kinomoto-san, if you need a break at any time, please say so."

"Hai, sensei. Arigato," Touya said quietly, and Yukito could sense his annoyance and shame at being singled out in that way.

The day wore on, and it came to the physical education lesson.

"Ah, Kinomoto. I got the hospital letter excusing you from sports. You can sit on the bleachers, and catch up on your schoolwork, or just watch."

"Sensei, I'm OK to play, really. They're just being over cautious."

"Well, you're my best player, and I'd rather err on the side of caution. Until the hospital clears you, you're benched."

"Yes sir." Touya sighed.

He sat up on the bleachers, and watched the game, bored, alone and frustrated.

Someone thumped down on the bench beside him, and he looked over.

"Akizuki." He growled.

"Don't worry, I'm not here to harass you, I know when I'm beat."

"What?"

"I felt it this morning, when Yue warned me off. There is a mating bond in place."

"And what do you plan on doing about it?"

"Nothing, like I said, I know when I'm beat. You must love him very much."

"Yes. He's everything to me."

"Good luck Touya-kun. I hope you and he make each other very happy," she said, walking away and leaving him alone again.

When Touya and Yukito got home that afternoon, they were surprised to see Fujitaka already home, and dinner started.

"How was your first day back?" He asked his son.

"Kind of stressful. Everyone wanted to know about the accident," Touya said, dropping tiredly down into one of the chairs by the dining table. Yukito brushed his fingers lightly over the back of Touya's neck, earning himself a gentle smile from his lover.

"Well, I'm sure it will get better. There's a letter here for you."

"For me?" Touya asked, taking the letter his father handed to him. He opened it up, and his eyes skimmed the page, then he simply crumpled the paper, and dropped it on the table, before walking from the room. Yukito and Fujitaka looked at each other in surprise, then Yukito reached out and picked up the letter, flattening it out again.

"Are you sure you should read that Yukito-san?" Fujitaka asked.

"Yes. So should you," Yukito said after reading the page. Fujitaka read it and sighed deeply.

"One of us is going to have to talk to him," he finally said.

"I'll do it," Yukito said.

"We should both do it."

They went up, and Fujitaka raised his hand to knock on the door, but Yukito stopped him, just clicking the door open.

"Koi?" He said, stepping in.

"Leave me alone Yuki," Touya said softly. He lay on his bed, his back to the door, staring at the wall.

"We're not going to leave you alone son," Fujitaka said.

"It isn't fair dad," Touya said.

"I know, I know it isn't fair, but there's nothing we can do about it."

"He almost killed me dad. He almost killed me, almost cost Yue, and Yuki their lives, almost tore our family apart, and he's going to get away with it. It isn't right."

Yukito sat on the side of the bed, and stroked his lovers back soothingly.

"I know it isn't right Koi, but you're alive, and that's really all that matters," Yukito said softly.

"He should still be punished Yuki. Where's the justice in this?"

"I know it's hard and I know it isn't fair, but they said there wasn't enough evidence to charge him. Do you really want to drag this through the courts, put yourself through all that stress and misery, knowing that at the end of it, he'll probably walk anyway?" Fujitaka asked.

"I guess not," Touya said, not sounding convinced.

Yukito shifted forms, and Yue looked at Fujitaka with cool amethyst eyes. Fujitaka got the hint, and quietly withdrew from the room, leaving his son alone with his mate.

"To-ya, Koi. There's nothing we can do about it now. We don't even know the identity of the driver. Let it go. There's nothing to be gained making yourself miserable over something that can't be altered."

"I can find him," Touya said darkly. Yue sighed, and turned Touya onto his back, looking down into the unhappy blue eyes.

"And then what? You end up in prison for taking the law into your own hands? How do you think Sakura and your father would feel about that?" Yue asked him, leaning down to kiss him softly.

"Let it go," he said again.

"All right," Touya said, pulling Yue down so he could kiss him again. Yue kept up the gentle pressure on Touya's lips as he skillfully opened the buttons on Touya's school shirt. At the same time, Touya's fingers nimbly dealt with the fastenings of Yue's robes. Yue unzipped the fly on Touya's uniform pants, and slid his hand inside, squeezing his semi erect manhood gently through the thin material of his boxers. Touya moaned softly into the kiss, his body arcing up against Yue's at the contact as he came fully hard in Yue's hand.

"Shall we go down and help your father with dinner?" Yue asked with a wicked glint in his eyes as he released Touya.

"Yue!" Touya protested, reaching one hand around behind Yue to stroke that hypersensitive little spot he had discovered in Yue's wings. Yue gasped sharply, his eyes closing as he hardened.

"Still want to go downstairs?" Touya asked slyly.

"No," Yue said, lust in his eyes when he opened them again.

The rest of their clothes quickly tumbled to the floor, and Yue stroked the warm, muscular torso under him. Touya smiled, and mirrored the gesture on Yue's cool, slender body, before wrapping his strong arms around the deceptively delicate form, and stroking his wings.

"Which way?" Yue whispered softly. In reply, Touya gently grasped Yue, and guided him to his entrance, wrapping his strong legs around Yue's hips.

"Wait, lubricant," Yue said, not wanting to hurt his lover. Touya nodded, and released him just long enough for Yue to lubricate himself, then the angelic guardian moved back into position. He leaned down to kiss Touya deeply, muffling his soft cry as he pushed inside him, feeling that muscular body arch up against him. Yue felt warm light against his closed eyelids, and opened his eyes sharply as feathers brushed over his bare skin and across his own wings. Touya's dark wings slowly closed around them as Yue started to thrust into him. Yue was surprised, this was the first time Touya had changed forms since he had retaken his human form when he regained consciousness.

"To-ya, you changed." He whispered, looking down into smoky, thunder cloud gray eyes, the slit pupils dilated with arousal.

"Yeah, I guess I need to learn to, Ohhh, control that," he said, crying out and arching against Yue again as Yue's thrusting erection brushed over his prostate.

Fujitaka paused outside Touya's room on his way from the bathroom, intending to check on his son, but he heard the soft cries, and the muted, breathless whispers, and decided that they were occupied, and really wouldn't welcome his intrusion. He went quietly back downstairs and left them to their lovemaking.

Yue's thrusts were becoming harder, deeper, more urgent now, as he neared climax, and Touya was crying his name softly each time he drove into him, brushing repeatedly over that sensitive little spot deep inside. Yue's hips began to flex faster, more desperately as he felt that inevitable release getting closer.

"To-ya," Yue cried softly.

"Oh God, harder Yue, harder, faster," Touya cried out, his fingertips digging into Yue's shoulders.

Yue did as he asked, his head dropping forward to kiss and bite Touya's neck. Yue cried out sharply, falling still deep inside Touya as his hot seed spilled inside him. Breathlessly, he kissed the hollow of Touya's throat and over his collar bones, holding still until the deep internal spasms passed. They both breathed out softly in unison, Touya's breath ending in a soft whimper as Yue pulled out of him. Yue kissed him, a deep, tender, lingering kiss, then trailed kisses down his lovers chest, stomach, and abdomen, before taking his still erect manhood in his mouth. Touya bucked forward at the unexpected stimulus, but Yue had been expecting that, and compensated for the movement so he didn't choke on the thick shaft. He worked him lovingly, bringing him to his own release, swallowing him down. Touya's breathing evened out, and he slowly relaxed against the bed. Yue wriggled back up to lie with his head on Touya's chest, snuggling closer as Touya once more closed his wings around them.

"That feels so good." Yue murmured, stroking the dark feathers.

"I know. It's nice to be able to do it for you for a change," Touya said, running his fingers lightly through Yue's own feathers. They both drifted into a light, comfortable doze, happily entwined together.

Sakura, Li and Tomoyo came into the house, and found Fujitaka sitting at the dining table with a lukewarm cup of tea, looking at a rumpled piece of paper.

"Hi dad. Where's onii-chan? Tomoyo finished making the outfit for his guardian form, and she needs to check if there are any alterations to make."

"Leave him for a while Sakura. He was a little upset before, and I think Yue-san was distracting him. They're in bed."

"Why was onii-chan upset?" Sakura asked, wondering if it had something to do with him having gone back to school today.

"They're not charging the driver who almost killed him," Fujitaka said, tapping the rumpled bit of paper in front of him.

"What? Why?"

"There wasn't enough evidence, they weren't sure of a conviction."

"How is that possible? They must have had plenty of evidence from the scene of the accident," Li said, shocked.

"Not enough it seems."

"What about Touya-san's statement?" Tomoyo asked, unpacking small paper wrapped packages from her basket. Fujitaka froze, staring at the girl.

"Daddy?" Sakura asked.

"Touya never made a statement. He was still unconscious when we took him from the hospital, and when the police went to the hospital, the only person they could talk to..."

"Was mirror, who had to say she couldn't remember anything, because she didn't know anything." Sakura finished.

"Touya needs to talk to the police," Fujitaka said. He looked up at the ceiling, wondering if they were still having sex up there. Kero stuck his head out of Sakura's bag, and followed his gaze.

"They're asleep, if you're thinking what it looks like you're thinking," he said.

"Thank you Kero. Would you mind going up and waking them, asking them to come down."

"Why me?" He groused.

"Because even if they wake up grouchy, you're better equipped to deal with them," Fujitaka said reasonably.

Kero flitted out, and went upstairs, switching forms at the top, and padding along the hall, going into Touya's room. He saw his little brother, curled contentedly inside his lovers dark wings, and felt oddly reluctant to wake them, they looked so peaceful, so relaxed.

Yue sensed his gaze, and woke, opening his eyes slowly, and blinking, catlike.

"What?" He asked quietly.

"Kinomoto-sensei wants you both downstairs, something to do with Touya never having spoken to the police." He growled.

"What difference does it make? They already decided to let him walk," Touya said a little bitterly, without opening his eyes.

"Yeah, but they think you can't remember anything about the accident. Maybe if you remember enough, they'll change their minds." Kero pointed out.

"I remember everything," Touya said, sounding nauseated, and Yue stroked his chest gently.

"We'll be right down Kero," Yue said. Kero took the hint, and left. Yue kissed Touya's neck gently.

"Come on Koi," he said softly.

"Yue, I don't think I can do it, I don't think I can talk about it."

"Two options my love. Summon up the strength of will to talk about it, or let him walk away."

"Let's get dressed," Touya said abruptly switching forms again, and kissing the top of his mates head.

Fujitaka and the others looked up as the two came into the room.

"Did Kero tell you?" He asked.

"Yes," Touya said coolly.

"How much do you remember?"

"Everything."

"Good, then I'm going to call this police officer, and see if he'll talk to you. In the meantime, Tomoyo-chan wants you, or rather she wants the other half of you. It will keep your mind occupied for a while," Fujitaka said.

"Sorry?" Touya said, nonplused.

"I finished the clothes for your other half. I need to see if I have to make any changes."

"Oh, right," Touya said doubtfully, recalling some of the outfits Tomoyo had somehow persuaded Sakura to wear while she was chasing the cards.

"Come on then," she said, picking up the parcels, and grabbing his wrist, dragging him from the room.

"Uhm, Tomoyo-chan..."

"Don't worry Touya-san, Yue-san can help you with the fastenings and stuff, I just need to make sure I haven't restricted the movement of the wings, so that you can fly."

"Fly?" Touya repeated a little numbly.

"Well, you're going to have to sooner or later lover," Yue said with a smile, following him from the room.

They went back upstairs, and Tomoyo handed him the parcels.

"You try them on. I'll be in Sakura's room, give me a yell when you're ready for me," she said.

In his room, Touya looked at the packages like he thought they might blow up.

"Come on To-ya, open them."

"Yue, you saw some of the clothes Tomoyo-chan designed for the Kaijuu."

"Yes, and you have to admit, no matter how fussy and frilly they were, they always suited her. Tomoyo-chan has a good eye, and I don't think she sees you in pink," Yue said, trying not to smirk. Touya noticed anyway, and gave his lover a hard look as he opened the first parcel. The pants inside were black, made of some soft, silky material.

"See, promising start," Yue said encouragingly.

As Touya opened the rest of the parcels, they realized that Tomoyo had obviously looked long and hard at Yue's robes, and then made a much simpler, plainer version for Touya, sensing that he wouldn't be comfortable with all the adornments that Yue was used to. They were all made of the same lovely black silky cloth, and Yue smiled at him.

"You are going to look stunning," he said softly.

Touya changed forms again, finding it easier each time he did it, and Yue helped him dress. He realized that Tomoyo had also used modern fastenings, instead of the fiddly ones Yue was used to on his own robes.

"I was right, you do look stunning," he said a few minutes later, going to get Tomoyo. She stopped dead when she saw him, her eyes widening.

"Well, that turned out way better than I thought." She breathed, looking at the beautiful dark figure in front of her. She shook off the feelings the sight of him stirred up, a long buried crush trying to make its presence felt again.

"I need something to stand on," she said, looking around his room.

"The study desk is sturdy enough, if it's not too high," Touya said.

"Perfect," she said, pulling him over to it, and hopping up to stand on it.

"Right, turn your back on me," she said. He did as she said, and Yue saw him flinch slightly as the young girl touched him. She checked his wings weren't restricted while they were folded against his back, then had him opened them up, and run them through a range of movements.

"That doesn't feel tight or uncomfortable anywhere when you move your wings?"

"No, it feels very comfortable."

"Good, now we just need... Oh, I'm missing one. Hang on a second," she said, jumping down from the table, and going to look for whatever she had lost.

She came back moments later, carrying another parcel, a little bulkier than the others.

"Sorry, it was still in the bottom of the basket," she said, unwrapping it for him, to reveal a long coat. It fitted to the torso, and draped loosely from his hips to swirl around him as he moved.

"I thought it was better not to have it tight at the bottom, in case you needed to run, and I'm sorry, but you're going to have to go through all that with the wings again," she said. He did as she asked without complaint.

"Is it comfortable?" She asked him.

"It's perfect, thank you Tomoyo-chan."

"It certainly is," Yue said, walking over to his mate. Touya smiled, and pulled him close.

Tomoyo sighed dreamily looking at them, they went perfectly together, Yue seemed to glow even paler white against the darkness of his mate, and he fitted snugly into the crook of Touya's arm, and the curve of his wing. Touya was so tall, and strong and masculine, and Yue was small, light, slender and delicate looking. They seemed to be total opposites, yet they matched, like two pieces of a puzzle.

Yue was looking up into Touya's amazing gray eyes, and she could almost see the love flowing between them, and she really, really wished she had her video camera.

"Touya." Fujitaka called up the stairs, breaking the moment.

"Coming." Touya called back, releasing his mate, and this time holding out a hand to help Tomoyo down from the table.

"Shall we go and see what they think of your design, Tomoyo-chan?" He asked. She blushed and allowed him to lead her from the room.

"Wow," Sakura said when they arrived downstairs, and they could see that everyone else was equally stunned.

"Tomoyo-chan, I think your design has a general seal of approval," Touya said with a smile. The doorbell sounded and Sakura looked up.

"I'll go," she said.

She opened the door, and was stunned to see Eriol there, for once without his guardians.

"Sakura," he said, bowing slightly.

"Eriol-san. What can I do for you?"

"Ruby moon said something about your brother and Yue, and I wanted to know if it was true."

"That would depend what she said."

"That they had formed a mating bond."

"Yes."

"Sakura, that can be very dangerous when one of the partners is just a human, I need... I need to be sure Yue is all right," he said.

"You had better come in," she said, stepping back.

He followed her inside, taking off his shoes in the entry way, and following her further into the house.

In the living room, Sakura saw the look on her brother's face, and thought their father must have told him when the policeman would be coming to take his statement. Eriol hadn't noticed Touya yet, he was focused on Yue.

"Yue-san," Eriol said.

"Eriol-san," he said, his eyes wary as he looked at the young half reincarnation of his former master.

"Yue, Ruby moon told me she had sensed a mating bond between you and Kinomoto-san. When she asked him about it, he confirmed it."

"So?" Yue asked.

"Yue, you know how dangerous something as powerful as a mating bond is when one of the participants is human. The drain of maintaining it could kill you, and if anything went wrong, the backlash could kill both of you."

Yue looked Eriol in the eye for a moment, then he looked up, over Eriol's head.

"To-ya?"

"It's not really an issue, is it angel? Neither of us is human, so there's nothing for us to worry about."

Eriol started at the voice right behind him, and turned. He looked up, and was struck speechless at the imposing sight of the black clad, ebony winged guardian.

"Ruby didn't mention that." He finally managed to gasp.

"That would be because we didn't mention it to Ruby. No one other than the people in this room knows, and I would be much happier keeping it that way," he said coldly.

"Touya-kun, the police officer will be here in about twenty minutes. Don't you think you should change?" Fujitaka asked gently.

Touya nodded and retook his human form. As soon as the light faded from around him, he moaned, and crumpled to the floor.

"To-ya," Yue cried in alarm, hurrying to his mate.

"What's wrong with him?" Sakura asked, going to her knees across from Yue, her unconscious brother lying between them.

"I don't know," Yue said, sounding scared.

"Sakura, let me look at him, please," Eriol said, summoning his staff. She moved out of the way, and he knelt in her place, holding the staff in his left hand, and holding his right over Touya, concentrating hard.

"He feels very weak, drained. How many times today has he done that?"

"The switch? Twice both ways."

"He's drained himself of energy. He's going to need to be a lot more careful until he can build up better reserves, and gets used to the transformation. You know how tiring the transformation can be Yue, how much it can take out of you."

"Of course, you're right. I didn't think of it," Yue said. Eriol gave him a reassuring smile.

"Kinomoto-sensei, perhaps it would be as well if you learned how to do this. If you want to."

"Do what?"

"Feed a little energy into him when he gets this weak, until he is strong enough to take care of himself."

"I should learn how to do it," Sakura said.

"No, you have enough demands on your energy," Eriol said.

"It's all right Sakura, taking care of my children is still my responsibility, no matter how much magic of their own they might have," Fujitaka said with a gentle smile. He knelt beside Eriol, and looked to him for guidance.

"All right, put your hand under the back of his neck, just here," Eriol said, guiding his hand to the right place.

"OK."

"Now, focus on drawing up your own power, let it flow through you. Then very, very gently, very slowly, let a little of it trickle into him, just where you're touching him. You must control the flow of energy very carefully, too much energy not his own could harm him. Stop when he begins to become conscious."

Fujitaka drew his hand back as Touya's eyelids fluttered.

"What about the police?" Sakura asked as Yue lifted Touya onto the sofa and pulled a throw over him. He resumed his human form, and sat on the floor beside the sofa, stroking Touya's hair until his eyes came fully open.

"I don't see why he can't still talk to them while he's resting here," Fujitaka said, putting a hand lightly to the side of his sons face.

"You feel up to it?"

"Sure, I guess." Touya shrugged.

The police officer arrived, and looked at the boy lying pale and tired looking on the sofa.

"Are you sure you're feeling well enough to talk to me here?" He asked.

"I'm fine, especially if there is any chance at all that the driver who almost killed me will be punished," Touya said firmly.

"All right," The policeman said.

Half an hour later, the officer had Touya's statement, and had asked him any other questions he thought pertinent. He closed his notebook, putting it away, and looked at Touya.

"The driver of the van wants very much to meet with you, to talk with you," he said softly.

"No."

"Listen to me, Kinomoto-san. Even with your statement, it is very, very unlikely we will get a conviction against him. The case will probably never even come to court. If you ever want to know why the accident happened that day, your best chance is to see him, to ask him yourself," The officer said gently.

"Why? Why isn't he going to be punished for what he did?"

"He is actually a very nice man, but his family lawyer is trying to claim the accident is your fault, that you were going too fast."

"I wasn't speeding, and even if I had been, the fact that I had right of way puts him in the wrong."

"I do understand your point of view, believe me I do. I have a son not much older than you, and he is into bikes too, but there is little we can do here. Your best chance of getting any closure at all, is if you face this man, and talk to him yourself."

Touya closed his eyes, turning away, and the officer sighed.

"I'll leave my number here. If you change your mind, give me a call, and we'll set up a meeting between you and him."

Fujitaka had been keeping an eye on the door to the room where the officer was talking to Touya, and he saw the officer step out into the hall.

"How did it go?" Fujitaka asked him as he moved to intercept the man, and shoe him to the door.

"It probably wasn't what he wanted to hear. We're still not going to be able to charge the driver. The man does want to talk to your son, and I think it would be better for him in the long run if he agrees to the meeting. It will give him a chance to move on."

"I'll talk to him, but I don't see it happening. Touya wants justice, this man nearly killed him."

"I know, I really do sympathize, and I know how I would feel if it were my son, but there really is nothing we can do about it."

Touya was sitting with his arms wrapped around his knees, staring out of the window, when his father came into the room.

"What are you going to do?" Fujitaka asked him gently.

"I don't know. I guess that I'll have to accept that the man is going to go free."

"So, meet with him, face to face. Ask him why he pulled out in front of you that day."

"I'll think about it," Touya said.

"All right, you need to get some rest. Go back up to bed, and I'll bring you some dinner in a while," Fujitaka said. He saw Touya look past his shoulder, and knew that Yue had come up behind him.

Yue knelt beside the sofa, wrapping his arms around Touya and holding him tightly for a moment, then he lifted him lightly in his arms, silently carrying him from the room.

xxxxxx

Two weeks later, Touya and Yukito were waiting in a plainly furnished room in the police station. Touya had finally agreed to meet the driver, and this had been agreed to as neutral ground. The door opened and a man was shown in. He was surprisingly young, not looking to be more than five or six years older than the boys themselves. He was pale, looked washed out, looking like sleeping was a problem from the dark shadows under his eyes.

"Kinomoto-san?" He queried.

"That's me. This is a friend of mine, Tsukishiro-san," Touya said a little coldly.

"I'm Myoshi Kam. I really am very, very grateful to you for agreeing to meet with me. It means so much that I get a chance to tell you myself how sorry I am for what happened that day, and how glad I am that you're all right."

"I think all right is a matter of conjecture." Touya snapped.

"I know. I really do regret the accident that day, believe me, if I could turn the clock back, change that one moment of inattention that almost made me a killer, then I would. When they told me how old you were, I just wanted to die."

"Why did you pull out in front of me that day?"

"I was in a hurry to get home. It was my daughter's birthday, and I had promised her that I would be home early. I really, really thought I had time to clear the junction before you reached it."

"So, was it worth it? Risking the life of someone, for the sake of getting home thirty seconds earlier?"

"No, no it wasn't. If it's any comfort to you at all, I was horrified at the way my family lawyer got the charges dropped, trying to blame you for the accident."

"Yet you let him do it."

"I'm not proud of that, really I'm not. I was terrified of going to prison, and being away from my little girl. It was cowardice I know, but I allowed him to convince me that since you didn't die, it wasn't so bad."

"You really are pathetic. I hope you can live with yourself for the rest of your life, bearing in mind that you almost ended mine."

"I really was hoping that there was a chance I could one day earn your forgiveness."

"You can ask that, after all the misery, pain and trauma you put my family through? You seriously want me to forgive you for it?"

"Not right now, I just want to know it some day, there might be a chance?"

"I don't know," Touya said honestly.

Yukito put a hand lightly on his shoulder, squeezing gently.

"You're never going to heal properly if you don't let go of the hate Koi," he told him silently. Touya acknowledged the point with a fractional tilt of his head, and looked back at the man.

"Maybe, someday," he said softly.

"Thank you that was all I needed to hear, that there was a chance. Thank you again for agreeing to meet with me."

"Sure," Touya said. He looked at Yukito as the man left the room, and Yuki smiled gently.

"You are strong Koi, stronger now than ever before. You will get through this." Yuki promised gently.

"As long as I have you with me, I have no doubt about that," he said.

They left the room, and realized that the driver hadn't gone that far. He was outside, with his wife and daughter. His wife had her arms around him, holding him tightly, and the little girl, who looked to be about five, was watching with wide eyes as her daddy cried in her mommy's arms.

"Come on, koi, lets get out of here. We have better things to do than fret over that which cannot be changed," Yuki said softly, grasping Touya's hand and pulling him gently to the door.

"Yes.." Touya agreed with a tender smile, following his lover contentedly.

Even if they did now have eternity, why should they waste a moment.

Owari.


End file.
